Leah Weiss is an American author, known for her Southern fiction novels. She was born in eastern North Carolina and raised in the foothills of Virginia. After graduating from Dunbarton College in Washington, D.C. with a degree in music, Weiss went on to receive an education degree from Kent State University. She worked for 24 years as the Executive Assistant to the Headmaster at Virginia Episcopal School before retiring to pursue a career in writing.
Weiss' love for reading and writing can be traced back to her artistic family, with her aunt designing clothes and her grandfather being a violinist. However, it wasn't until her fifties that she considered writing professionally. Inspired by her mother's simple but extraordinary life, Weiss initially planned to write memoirs about her, but eventually found her voice in fiction. She honed her craft by attending writing workshops and conferences, studying her favorite authors, and haunting bookstores. After facing rejection with her first novel and finding success with several short stories, Weiss published her debut novel, "If The Creeks Don't Rise," in 2017.
Weiss' writing is known for its Southern influence and musicality, with "If The Creeks Don't Rise" being described as a novel that is best read aloud. The novel explores the lives of hardworking and self-sufficient people with humble dreams, set against the backdrop of the South. Weiss' follow-up novel, "All The Little Hopes," was released in July 2021 and is a story of friendship forged by books and bees, when the timeless troubles of growing up meet the murky shadows of WWII. When she's not writing, Weiss enjoys traveling and hiking with her husband, Dave.